Posts tagged ‘Allah’

My Yahoo! News article ‘Father’ and ‘Son’ Ousted from the Trinity in New Bible Translations has been published. As of this morning, it is the thirteenth most popular news item for the weekend. I praise God this information is getting out to the public. These reputable Christian organizations did not expect the news to get out. They should be held accountable. It is my hope and prayer the perpetrators of this heresy will come to repentance. Even on a weekend our dear brother, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, is languishing in an Iranian prison, ready to die for this Truth, some of us attempt to change it to make it more palatable to those who it offends.

The issue in this article is not about the use of “Allah” in Muslim-Idiom Translations (MIT). Since the article went viral, I know of a few people who have raised this argument and I want to put it to rest. For the sake of argument, how does “Allah” which means “God” in Arabic translate to “Father” in Arabic? There is an Arabic word for “father” and why shouldn’t these translators render “Father” as father in Arabic? The issue here is not about substituting “Allah” for “God.”

Please do not forget to make your voice heard. Sign the petition to stop these organizations. You can find it HERE.

[Yahoo! News]—A controversy is brewing over three reputable Christian organizations, which are based in North America, whose efforts have ousted the words “Father” and “Son” from new Bibles. Wycliffe Bible Translators, Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) and Frontiers are under fire for “producing Bibles that remove “Father,” “Son” and “Son of God” because these terms are offensive to Muslims.”

Concerned Christian missionaries, Bible translators, pastors, and national church leaders have come together with a public petition to stop these organizations. They claim a public petition is their last recourse because meetings with these organizations’ leaders, staff resignations over this issue and criticism and appeals from native national Christians concerned about the translations ”have failed to persuade these agencies to retain “Father” and “Son” in the text of all their translations.”

Biblical Missiology, a ministry of Boulder, Colorado-based Horizons International, is sponsoring the petition.

The main issues of this controversy surround new Arabic and Turkish translations. Here are three examples native speakers give:

Have you ever encountered a Muslim who dismisses the authority of the Hadith, claiming to follow only the Qur’an? If so, you are not alone. I have met a lot of them. These Muslims are uncomfortable with the Hadith which contains information that are contradictory because they are based on the life of Prophet Muhammad who lived his life as he willed.
A Muslim I met online recently—a convert to Islam—particularly insisted all a Muslim ever needed to know was in the Qur’an. That prompted me to ask him if the command for Muslims to pray 5 times a day was in the Qur’an. He claimed it was. He pointed to some verses trying to prove his claim. Let us see if the Qur’an actually says Muslim must pray 5 times a day and if it doesn’t, where Muhammad got the idea.
The Qur’an mentions only two out of the five daily prayers by name namely, Fajr (dwan) and Isha (late evening) in Qur’an 24:58. The other three: Dhuhur (solar noon), Asr (mid afternoon) and Maghrib (right after sunset) are not mentioned in the entire Qur’an.
There are indirect references like “two ends of the day” and “approaches of the night” in Qur’an 11:114 which Muslims interpret to mean Fajr, Maghrib, and Isha prayers.
Qur’an 17:78 has “Establish regular prayers-at the sun’s decline till the darkness of the night, and the morning prayer” which has Fajr directly and Isha indirectly mentioned.
Qur’an 30:18 “Yea, to Him be praise, in the heavens and on earth; and in the late afternoon and when the day begins to decline” has some Muslims commentaries trying to squeeze in Asr and Dhuhur as what this verse was alluding to even when the verse was not a command to pray. I thought Allah gave Muhammad the 5 daily prayers when he “ascended” to the heavens! What happened? Why does the Qur’an only mention two of these important daily prayers by name and does not command Muslim to pray at least 5 times a day?
My online Muslim friend continued to tell me in Qur’an 2:238 “middle prayer” apparently refers to Asr even when the verse does not say so. He just assumes since Muslims currently practice 5 daily prayers and Asr is the middle prayer, he sells out on the idea. Little does he know only at most three prayers are “mentioned” in the Qur’an at one time and even these three have a “middle prayer.” To make the matter even worse, this verse was revealed in Medina, years after the command for the 5 compulsory daily prayers were supposedly given in the Hadith. Qur’an chapter 17 contains Muhammad’s alleged ascension to the seven heavens and only mentions two daily prayers: Fajr (directly) and Isha (indirectly). The Hadith is the only source that has the number—five—and all the names of the compulsory daily prayers
If Allah really meant Muslims must observe the 5 daily prayers (Salat), shouldn’t he have made it clear in the Qur’an? He didn’t. Muhammad’s Hadith appear more lucid on the 5 daily prayers (Salah) than the Qur’an.
Prophet Muhammad must have borrowed the idea of the 3 daily prayers in the Qur’an from the Jews. Daniel 6:10:
When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.
Daniel prayed toward Jerusalem. Muhammad prayed toward Jerusalem for the first 14 years of Islam. Daniel, like others who practice Judaism, prayed three times a day.
I have no doubt Muhammad borrowed the idea of the 3 daily prayers which are in the Qur’an from the Jews and the 5 daily prayers from Zoroastrians. He did not ascend to the heavens to get the command to pray five times. Even the Qur’an claims the “ascension” was a mere dream (Qur’an 53:13-18).
The Hadith is the only source where Muslims can find information on the 5 daily prayers and how to observe them. Though it is a boom for critics of Islam like me, it has answers to key issues in Islam as mundane as the 5 daily prayers without which a Muslim would not be granted paradise. That is another Crack in the Crescent for you.

There has been a lot of discussion about “Hell” lately, courtesy of Rob Bell and his new book Love Wins. I have heard cases the news coverage of this book has made some conversations with non-believers possible.

What does Islam teach about Hell and who goes in it? Prophet Muhammad—the closest Muslim to Allah—said in the Hadith that he did not know if Allah would let him into paradise or send him to Hell. This happened when he was asked whether a pious Muslim man who had died would go to paradise. He didn’t just answer the question but dropped a bombshell. He responded, “As to him, by Allah, death has overtaken him, and I hope the best for him. By Allah, though I am the Apostle of Allah, yet I do not know what Allah will do to me (Sahih Bukhari, Volume 5, Book 58, Number 266.).”[1] Do ordinary Muslims stand any chance of escaping Hell?

This verse is pretty clear Allah said all Muslims will go to Hell, regardless of their pious lives. Some Muslim scholars disagree. However, they are in disagreement with Prophet Muhammad who said, “The believers, after being saved from the (Hell) Fire, will be stopped at a bridge between Paradise and Hell.”[2] Who are the believers who are “saved from Hell”?

What is this Bridge? A widely used Qur’an commentary written by Abdullah Yusuf Ali states “the Bridge over Hell, the Bridge Sirat, over which all must pass to their final Destiny. This Bridge is not mentioned in the Qur’an.” Yusuf Ali was forthright in bringing to his readers’ attention the bridge Muslims widely believe would stretch over Hell is not mentioned in the Qur’an. Since Allah didn’t reveal it to Prophet Muhammad, where did Muhammad get it? That is another Crack in the Crescent for another time.[3]

The idea of God in Islam is derived from the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah (sayings and deeds). Both these sources show how “God,” “Allah” in Arabic, differs from the Judeo-Christian God. There is plenty of evidence in the Qur’an and the Hadith that the idea of “God” in Islam is of Muhammad’s invention. Here are a few.

Allah in Islam who Muslims consider omniscient confuses Mary the Mother of Jesus with Miriam the sister to Aaron and Moses in the Bible. This doesn’t make sense when even Muslims know Mary and Aaron cannot be siblings because they lived several centuries apart. Muhammad—Allah’s Apostle—confirmed in the Hadith that Mary, Aaron, and Moses shared the same father. Apparently he believed it because Allah told him so. The story even gained some traction among Muslims of Muhammad’s days. The Hadith shows it only took a Christian to correct Muhammad years later in Medina. Unfortunately the error is still in the Qur’an because Allah—the all knowing—has not issued a correction yet.

Muhammad invoked Allah’s name to get his desires and wishes. There are instances in the Qur’an, proven by narratives in the Hadith, where when he had a desire for something he got it with a “revelation.” He never failed to get his way, especially after he became a political and military leader. Here are a few cases:

1. In Surah (chapter) 33 of the Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad admired Zainab, the wife of his adopted son Zayd bin Haritha. The Hadith shows he went to Zainab’s house and saw her scantly clad. He desired her as a wife. Then he got a “revelation” from Allah which forced Zayd to divorce Zainab. Then Muhammad—who had at least five wives at that time—married her.

2. Muslim women only began wearing veils in Islam because Prophet Muhammad was concerned men would seduce his new wife Zainab. The Hadith shows how they were milling around Zainab’s new home and even visiting her in Muhammad’s absence. He became quite concerned. One day, he pulled a curtain and a new verse was revealed. Mark you; the “revelation” came after he had already pulled the curtain. Shouldn’t it be the other way around had God been speaking to Muhammad? “Allah” also required that men should visit Muhammad’s home on invitation only. Poor Zayd. He did not enjoy the same privilege. From that time on, men had to talk to Muhammad’s wives behind a curtain. So much for Muslims telling the world veiling is for modesty.

3. A typical Muslim man can marry up to four wives. How about Muhammad? Allah “told” him via a “revelation” he could marry as many as he wished. Those who rivaled him, Muhammad forced them to divorce some of their wives to get to the “maximum” four.

There are many other references in the Qur’an where a Muslim must obey Allah and Muhammad. Surprisingly, none of these verses was from the period when Islam was its nascent stage, Muhammad was powerless. The Hadith shows Muhammad concocted them to cater to his own desires. (Absolutes are rare in Islam. The only absolute with certainty is Islam’s opposition to the Trinity—a concept even “Allah” did not understand and falsely accused Christians of worshipping god the father, mother and son. Many Muslim still believe Christians worshipped these three gods even when it is patently false.)

There are many more examples that show the Qur’an was an invention of Muhammad to live a convenient life. He dubbed it a “revelation” from “Allah” to dupe his followers. The Islamic deity Muhammad preached couldn’t be the same as the Judeo-Christian God because the “Allah” Muhammad preached pandered to Muhammad. Even Muslims in Malaysia who abide by the Sharia agree the deity in Islam is not the same as the Judeo-Christian God. The New York Times reports they burned Catholic churches over Malay Christians’ use of “Allah” in publications. Muslims know better who their “God” is. He is not the same as the Judeo-Christian God!

Christians are commemorating the passion of Jesus Christ. After all, without it culminating into his death and followed by resurrection three days later, our redemption would have been impossible. While our focus is on this momentous occasion, it is imperative that we do not forget to engage those who have different beliefs surrounding this Easter season.

Muslims believe that Jesus Christ was never crucified or died because Allah would not let his prophets suffer even though the Qur’an mentions at least three times how some of Allah’s messengers were slain. If one asks Muslims to provide the names of those slain, they wouldn’t. The Hadith also shows how Prophet Muhammad died an agonizing death, which spanned four years. (I discussed Muhammad’s death and also how Jesus Christ couldn’t be the same Jesus, Isa, Muslims refer to in an earlier post.)

They believe that Jesus is yet to die. The Hadith has references to how he is coming back to be married, have children, die and be buried according to Islamic customs. Muslims tell me to forget about the empty tomb in Jerusalem that Christians claim Jesus Christ vacated more than 2000 years ago. There is an empty grave next to Prophet Muhammad’s tomb, and it has been empty for about 1380 years and it does not belong to an Arab Muslim. Sunan Al-Tirmidhi states “Jesus, son of Mary, will be buried along with him [Muhammad]. …a place for a grave had remained in the house [a building that houses Muhammad’s tomb].”

Samuel Zwemer, the pioneer of Christian missionary work to the Arab world wrote, “The place of his [Jesus] future grave is already marked out between the graves of Omar, the caliph, and Fatuma, Mohammed’s daughter.” (Samuel Zwemer, Moslem World 1907 (Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing, 2003), 66.) Why it took the all-knowing Allah 600 years to refute the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is a question we should ask Muslims. Also, why Allah took his time and did not consider the highly publicized death and resurrection of Jesus Christ a problem at least through the first 12 years since the advent of Islam, and only turned in opposition when Muhammad moved to Medina, is another issue we should take up with Muslims.